Time and time again
by Merucha
Summary: Sanji made a terrible, terrible mistake...and no one knows but him. But that doesn't make it any easier to take. Now he has to correct it, or they may be permanently short one crewmate...
1. Prologue

**Hey everyone! Long time no request-related stories, huh? Well, I said I'd start another chapter story, and I don't like making promises I don't keep….so here! I'm not sure how frequently I'll update, or how long this one will be, but time will tell. (I will also be making just as insanely many puns as I did in One way ticket to Hell. And that rhymed.)**

**Stormsoul22, I am working on your request, but the thing is I haven't seen Franky yet in the anime, so I'm trying to get the gist of how he acts from fan art and fanfics. It's harder than you'd think, especially when you're trying not to read spoilers.**

**Right, this has gone on long enough. **

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><p><strong>Time and Time again<strong>

Okay, so maybe it wasn't such a great idea to fiddle with something you didn't know how to work. But it's like having a big, red button that says; DON'T PUSH. Telling people not to push it is just going to intrigue them further! So if there's a big, complicated-looking machine that says USE AT OWN RISK, isn't it obvious what will happen?

Well, duh.

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><p><strong>I'll be posting chapter 1 right away, I just wanted to try out a prologue. You like so far?<strong>


	2. Chapter 1

**Here's chapter one! Hope nothing's OOC…**

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><p>As the Going Merry sailed languidly towards an island that seemed to be covered in a yellow mist, schools of beautiful, blue and silver fish swam in circles underneath, painting fleeting patterns into the coral-covered bottom. Chopper was torn between awe -over the spectacular colours and vibrancy of his surroundings- or anguish -over not being able to join the fishes and have a little chat. He cursed his Devil fruit powers sometimes, but then he remembered that if he didn't have them, he'd probably just be stuck at Drum island still, not having even a percentage of as much fun as he was having here.<br>Still, he wouldn't mind a swim. He'd ask Usopp if he could take him, but Usopp was busy sketching out the bottom of the almost surrealistically clear ocean. He probably wouldn't even hear Chopper over his own mind, Usopp sometimes got absorbed in his drawings like that.  
>Chopper suddenly felt hands lift him up and throw him over the railing. He emitted a squeal before another set of hands caught him, just above the water's surface. Another hand sprung from the keel of the ship, splashing the water just the teeniest bit, calling the fishes up. Chopper reminded himself to thank Robin, before he was actively talking with the shimmering fishes.<br>Everyone-even Zoro (not napping for a change) and Nami, was admiring the beautiful nature surrounding the isle. Sanji wasn´t even smoking, not wanting to taint the spring-like feel of the clear air. He could always catch up later.  
>His eye caught searched the deck for Nami and Robin, wanting to see the faces they'd surely make over something this amazing. He found Nami, however, she was somewhat hidden behind Zoro's feature as he leaned over, watching the sea. Sanji was about to call to him to get the hell out of the way so Nami was visible again, but decided against it. He hadn't seen the swordsman looking this content for the longest time. Sanji and Zoro had been arguing even more than usual, and not the normal way either; their insults had taken an edge to them, making them say things they'd sooner regret even thinking. Therefore they'd just stayed out of each other's way, not risking another fight, but not burying the war axe either. But seeing Zoro now made Sanji want to forget all about their banter. Zoro wasn't so much the irritating numbskull at the moment, he wasn't even scowling, just gazing at the landscape with an uncharacteristically gentle smile.<br>_Guess even the marimo would find something to smile about here_, Sanji thought to himself before moving over to ogle Nami.  
>Setting things straight with Zoro would wait until they'd dock.<p>

Sanji whistled some made-up tune as he walked from street to street, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere this town seemed to offer. It was bountiful on two things; women and food. Obviously this town was simply ideal for one member of the Straw Hats, and Sanji was eyeing various tasty and delicious-looking merchandise. And food, too.  
>His little talk with Zoro had gone remarkably well, even better than Sanji had ever anticipated.<p>

Sanji nudged Zoro in the ribs while everyone was focused on Luffy, who was talking with one of the residents of the island.  
>"Listen, can I talk to you, under four eyes?""I'd say that was three eyes, cook, but sure.<br>They walked a little way away, not so far it'd be considered suspicious, but far enough so no one could overhear them without trying.  
>"This is going to sound stupid and I'm not used to it, so I'll say it out straight. All this fighting's gotten out of hand, and Nami-san's been hinting that we should at least try and not kill each other. So, what say you we put everything behind us for now and just forget it?"<br>Sanji knew Zoro didn't like sugar-coating or hinting, preferring the straight-out and clean version of things. Zoro's scowl told Sanji he was going to retort with something spiteful (then again, Zoro was always scowling, how the hell was he supposed to read that mug of a face?), but it eased out into a marimo-version of a smile. "I've been thinking the same thing, Sanji. I've almost run out of names to call you, anyway." Zoro stuck out his hand , which Sanji took, understanding that the hurtful words in the past were now just that; words in the past.  
>"Who needs new names anyway….marimo.""Ero-cook."<br>"Knucklehead."  
>"Curly-brow."<br>"Shitty-swordsman."  
>"Dartboard."<p>

As a result of their conversation (and the fact that Sanji'd overheard Nami-swaan discussing her new, very pretty and very revealing outfit with Robin), Sanji was in an exceptionally good mood. He had groceries that had a price way below their quality, there were plenty of women who -gasp- smiled to him when he addressed them, the weather was gorgeous and everything just seemed to be absolutely perfect in every aspect. For once.  
>Sanji knew exactly what Usopp would say if he knew what Sanji was thinking, "Don't jinx it like that, Sanji, now something bad's bound to happen!". But the little pessimist wasn't here, was he? So Sanji's mood stayed as good as it was. And it even raised a bit when he saw that sweet-looking little park with the innocent, white fence around it.<p>

Where a discarded machine was lying in wait.

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><p><strong>You get a nutella sandwich if you can guess what this machine has to do with anything. <strong>


	3. Chapter 2

**Here's chappie two, and I think everyone knows what to expect now. More intimate storyline will begin soon, but it seems I have a tendency to drag these things…**

**Anyway!**

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><p>Sanji opened the small wooden gate, which only had a child's lock on it, and walked into the pristine park. Everything seemed to be cut out of a picture, yet it wasn't obnoxious or fake-looking. The grass was the greenest Sanji'd seen since Little Garden, and soft to the touch.<p>

Trees outlined the edges of the park, shielding it from just anyone's eyes, and grew into a small clash in one corner. Gorgeous as the weather was, Sanji was a little too hot, still having his usual black suit on. Everyone else had light clothing on all the time, and the girls were the only ones with some real variety of clothes. And say what you may, but Sanji had some sense of style, and liked to dress up nicely. Unfortunately, that meant he suffered on occasions like these.

Seeking some relief from the sun in the cooling shadows of the trees in the corner, Sanji loosened his tie slightly. After all, there were no ladies around, might as well.

Sanji's hands hesitated when he saw something gleam in the sun's warm rays. A sheen of metal caught his eye, and Sanji had to brush away several branches and bushes before seeing that it was, in fact, some sort of a booth. It was probably made from some form of metal, hard and sturdy and -Sanji ran his hand over the surface- strangely cold, but not in a bad way, like cold hands after walking outside.

It was almost mesmerizing, this strange booth discarded in the small park. Who would throw this away? Why would no one have touched it, used it, taken it home with them? And, on that note, what did it do?

Climbing over the various forms of branches holding the machine, Sanji managed to get behind it, into the part that was turned towards the dark of the trees, completely hidden from view.

On that side, was a door.

_It looks almost like a cowering child, the way it faces away from everything like this, _Sanji thought. And for some reason he felt compassion for this machine, this item so alone in the shadow on such a beautiful day. _This is a goddamn machine, why the hell should I care? _But this machine, it was something special.

It wasn't until Sanji was leaning against the side of the device, relishing its coolness on his back, that he noticed something carved into the top of the door.

ENTER AT OWN RISK.

Well, that's not very welcoming, Sanji mused. What could this machine possibly do?

…What could it possibly do…

Only one way to find out, right? If he walked away now, he might never find out, and always wonder what the beautiful, gleaming hunk of metal could accomplish. Maybe it was something magnificent, something useful. _Or something dangerous, _Sanji's more pessimistic voice sounded, but Sanji brushed it off and went inside anyway. If the owner came back, Sanji would simply apologize and walk away.

The door opened without even the smallest squeak.

Inside wasn't much of anything, certainly not as Sanji'd imagined it. It didn't have any source of light, the way Sanji saw it, and only a single desk attached to the end opposite from the door, with some sort of keyboard, holding various numbers and letters. Sanji edged in, curious but slightly wary. He tried typing some random words on the keyboard, but nothing happened. In his frustration, he slammed a palm on the number section. Then, something happened.

Sanji thought he heard a voice behind him, very unclear but definitely saying his name. He spun around but forgot how small the space was, and stumbled. His hand, out of instinct, shot out to regain his balance, accidentally pressing a button which, unbeknownst to Sanji, would be ENTER.

All of a sudden, the door swung shut, engorging Sanji in darkness. He wasn't hot at all anymore, the cold of the metal seemed to seep into his body, chilling him to the bone.

A light turned on above the keyboard, and in the eerie white glow, Sanji could see his breath form clouds of steam that disappeared into the darkness, one by one. The light was coming from letters, seemingly hovering above Sanji, though the logical part of him suggested they were on some form of a screen. They read, 'Amberfield Isle, 11-11-133'. Well, that makes no sense whatsoever. Wait, hadn't Nami-swan said something about this island having previously been named Amber-something, but the name was changed because…?

Robin popped into his mind, having continued Nami's explanation at the time, reminding everyone of her unusual power of knowledge.

"_This island was previously Amberfield Isle, named so because of the wide acres of wheat, giving the island a golden sheen, like amber. However, after a very tragic and borderline horrific incident, they say the fields were permanently stained red from the blood of the townspeople. However, the wheat's spores are said to swarm in the air, hence the almost golden mist one sometimes sees, and are supposed to bode a year of good fortune and peace. A red mist is also said to emerge from the centre of the island, usually during the fall, supposedly staining the leaves of trees red with it's curse. Such bode death and chaos._

_The island lost its namesake, but some pure-hearted settlers that came some years later re-named it _

_Rosenfields Island, from the clouds of red you can find in almost any rock, flower, or mold, reminding them not of blood but of the beauty of roses. People try not to mention the morbid part of the story, out of fear of loosing any ship attraction. Such is often done, when remembering history." Robin smiled, but not out of humor. "The bad things are buried away for someone else to deal with some other time, instead of being accepted."_

No one had really been surprised Robin knew all that, she did like the horror and eeriness of things.

Sanji, however not superstitious, was still mildly disturbed. In spite of that, he almost longed to hear what exactly had happened to give this island it's story.

Now that everything had sprung back into his mind, he wondered why this machine seemed set on Amberfield Island, and not Rosenfield. It didn't seem all that old, in fact, Sanji could swear it was as new as the morning's dew.

The letters became brighter, and then even brighter, almost blinding Sanji to a point where he had to shield his eyes. He felt like his insides would collapse; his breath was sucked out of him, his heart wouldn't beat, and the next thing he knew, it was over.

And the door was open now.

A warm, much more comforting light now flooded the small chamber Sanji had found cozy not a minute prior, but now it only made him feel claustrophobic. He was more than grateful when he stumbled out into the warm, comfortably heavy air. His surroundings, however, had changed drastically. No longer was it a warm spring day, with the vibrant colours of the trees, sky, and people. Now, everything had a more autumn-like atmosphere, with golden light piercing through the orange and pink clouds, painting the sky the brightest orange and red Sanji had ever seen. Everything…was breathtaking.

But there, as far to his left as he could see, were fields of complete gold, seeming to move when the warm wind stroked the straws. This was Amberfield Island. It had to be.

_"_

Robin looked up from her musings over a particularly interesting stand on the street. Something was…looming. It was the only way she could describe the feeling she had. The wind chimes hanging around the sign chimed, without any wind touching them. Robin's brow furrowed as she looked closer at the stone hanging from the middle of the ornament, catching some deep red flecks splattered over the bluish grey.

Red, like roses…or something else.

_"_

Sanji looked around himself in a mixture of awe, curiosity and nerve-wracking confusion. This wasn't the peaceful little park at all; peaceful, yes. Park, no.

Rather than going into that harmless-looking metal box again (Sanji now thought it was intimidating, almost), he walked on the mud-and-dust street, trying to find a clue where he was.

Seeing a figure dressed in clothes so old-looking they could be his great-great-grandmother's, Sanji corrected himself; where he was.

However, as the figure turned around in his direction, all his worries and ponderings were forgotten; it was a woman. And one hell of a looker, too!

Sanji noodled over, not even noticing when the poor lady startled. Healthily tan skin, marred with a few streaks of dirt, and eyes like shined copper adorned the face of the nameless woman. Naturally shiny, dark brown hair cascaded down her left shoulder in a fish-tail braid, just peeking out from the cloth she wore over her head. Sanji noticed, to his horror, that her very full, thick lips had a tear in them, and her jaw was slightly bruised, like she'd been hit. Her hands weren't tender and elegant as a lady's hands should be, but roughened and worn from years of hard labor. Judging from all that, and her torn, worn, ashen colored clothes, she could almost be a slave. Or someone from over 100 years ago… but that was crazy, right? Etiher way, she had an air of natural beauty about her. In the back of his mind, Sanji could almost swear he'd seen her before, somewhere.

"Oh, my fairest maiden, who has done this to thou? Who dared lay a hand on you, the flower of all flowers, the…" Sanji stopped to look where that woman used to stand, but was now empty. He could hear her footsteps distancing, her shawl flying behind her like a superhero's cape. "Hey! Wait, miss!" Sanji sighed loudly, knowing he'd probably scared the woman away for good.

"How do I get back?" he finished lamely, for only his own ears to hear.

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><p><strong>Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far, and special thanks to Freakingscarykid, who's overall an awesome dude. C:<strong>


	4. Chapter 3

**IMPORTANT QUESTION: Would you like me to make this into slash? ZoSan or something else, any pairings you'd like? Comment and let me know. Thought remember, I don't make it very obvious.**

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><p>Sanji kicked some dirt out of pure spite. Damn dirt, what the hell was it doing there, anyway. It had no business under his sole; it was only right he'd get to kick it around a bit. There had been grass here last time, now there was a goddamn dirt road stretching to a tiny, mucky village a few kilometers away. That village hadn't been there before, either. Plus, he had just gotten ditched by some (beautiful, elegant, marvelous) woman, who was possibly his only way to get information without having to walk this muddy excuse for a road until he reached that village.<p>

_Just my freakin' luck_, Sanji thought.

A strange, grating sound, like metal scraping against rusty metal, invaded Sanji's ears from behind. As soon as he whipped his head around, quickly enough to make his hair swivel from his eye for a brief second, there it was -the machine- drawing his eyes in with that same gravitational pull as before. Although he wouldn't admit it in a hundred years, he was actually started to be scared of that damn gadget. But that was just illogical. It was a thing, not something that could harm him intentionally.

But it still seemed to be menacing, even in the golden red glow of the sunset.

Sanji approached the machine with fake calmness, trying to trick an inanimate object. He reached out a tentative hand, then pulled himself together and pressed his palm against the surface.

_Stop this, Sanji, you're being an idiot. It's a thing, not a rabid animal._

Taking a quick breath, he opened the door again, revealing the exact same room, looking the exact same way it had before. He'd halfway expected it to change along with everything else, but it had remained untouched by time and space.

Sliding inside, he found that he didn't have the slightest clue about what he was going to do now. Last time, he'd just accidentally smashed some buttons and wound up wherever. Smashing more buttons seemed like a bit too big of a risk to actually take. What if he got himself even further from his own time? What if he never got back? Nami and Robin would be all alone with the rest of the idiots, who had no idea how to treat ladies!

_But what else can I do? This whole stupid, shitty, god-fucked device looks like it was made by goddamn aliens!_

He tried typing in 'Rosenfield Isles'. Nothing happened.

Wait, I had to press some numbers too, right? But which numbers would be correct?

Last time it was 11.11.133, right? Sanji hummed. Hesitantly, he pressed 1-1, 1-1. Nothing happened yet, so he took a giant leap of faith and made the last digit's the current year. Well, not current, he was stuck in the past, for Christ's sake, but the year he'd been in before this machine lured him in and messed his day up.

And yet, even when Sanji's hand was shaking slightly, nothing shifted or made a sound, nothing happened. A nerve somewhere deep inside Sanji snapped.

"God-fucking-fuck-dammit!" he screamed at the keypad, along with some well-chosen words not suitable for a gentleman. He didn't dare to smash it but was aching to take his anger out on something, preferably the world itself.

After more strings of curses, he regained his breath, glaring at the blinking space on the end of his code. He was one move away from being home, and he didn't know what it was!

"Can't you just go back? Rewind! Undo! Just get me the hell away from here and back to my goddamned ship with my goddamned crew!"

To Sanji's surprise, a small sound emitted from somewhere around him, before the letters flashed white once again. The door closed like last time, plunging him into the same darkness, and Sanji braced himself for the unpleasant sensation he knew would find him, like the first time.

Stumbling out of the machine for the second time, Sanji swore to god that if Usopp ever made another machine, it would be over his dead body.

Or at least away from the kitchen.

A small trickle of blood slipped from Sanji's nose and he wiped it away, grimacing and checking if his tie had fallen victim to stains. His health be damned, this was his favorite tie.

A large hand on his shoulder made him momentarily forget about his tie and he swung around, legs in a half-bent position, just in case he needed to use them.

"Geez, relax, cook, what's got you so high-strung?"

Sanji relaxed visibly at the sight of Zoro's grumpy-and-annoyed-mixed-with-curiosity face, and allowed his legs to resume their normal stance. He didn't quite feel like answering right away, though, so he just scowled slightly at his friend and lit a cigarette.

Meanwhile, Zoro kept talking.

"Nami told me to go get you, said something about e new recipe you'd like. I tried to call you, but you probably didn't hear me over the sound of your eyebrow swirling. What were you doing in there, anyway? You came out not a second after you'd gotten in."

Oh, so it had been Zoro's voice he'd heard calling his name right before the door had slammed shut. Sanji felt even more relaxed at that, it explained at least one of the many things that seemed devoid of sense.

He was about to tell Zoro about the entire thing, the village, the creepy machine, the lady, but he stopped dead in his tracks when he took one look at Zoro.

"What the hell?" Sanji half-yelled, pointing at Zoro's hands. They were fading. Zoro himself raised his hands to his eyes and stared disbelievingly at them, eyes wide in shock.

"W-what-" He managed to stutter. In the blankness of his mind, Sanji reacted on instinct and tried to make a grab for Zoro, only to grab nothing at all. His shoulders weren't there anymore either, and the rest of his was disappearing, fast. Sanji only managed to utter the beginnings of a few words before he was alone in the park. The last echo he heard before it too faded and was replaced with the chirping of the birds was Zoro's aghast "Sanji!"

Sanji took a breath. And another. And then he had to manually take yet another, before his lungs got the hang of it and started doing it for him. Everything was just as bright as it had been before. Birds chirping, bees buzzing, the chatter of the people outside of this little park of horror, carrying on with their lives as if Sanji's friend hadn't just disappeared in front of his eyes. His hand was still outstretched in front of him, grabbing at nothing. There weren't even footprints in the grass to mark the place where Zoro's boots had rested not a minute ago. This was impossible. Sure, it was the Grand Line and things were weird and unexplainable at best, but people didn't just disappear without a trace. It was illogical, it went against the laws of _everything_.

_Maybe this is a prank? Just one of Usopp's shenanigans? _Sanji thought. He looked around to see if he saw a mop of curly black hair, or that freak-of-nature nose sticking out of a bush. Nothing gave away anyone's presence. He was truly alone in the park.

"Right." Sanji stated into the air. Standing here gaping would do nothing; maybe he'd imagined Zoro, god knew what that machine had done to his mind, and the idiot swordsman was really back at the ship, or in town. Wherever he was, it wasn't here, so Sanji might as well move.

"I'm going to go now. That wasn't funny, for the record." Sanji said with a fake air of calmness. What the hell had just happened?

He stuck his hands into his pockets, aching for a cigarette, and walked in long, hasty strides back to the ship.

Sanji couldn't help but breathe an air of relief when he saw the Merry resting by the docks. At least, despite his abnormal traveling, that was still the same. Although he couldn't shake the air of wrongness, he momentarily forgot about it when he spotted the familiar straw hat bobbing around on the deck.

"Oi, Sanji! C'mon, where have you been?" Luffy grinned as he hung upside down on the rail, holding his hat in place with one hand. Sanji smiled and exhaled slowly. Everything was fine.

"Just got sidetracked, Luffy, nothing to worry about. Say, where is everyone?" Just to make sure, Sanji assured himself.

Luffy turned his head like a confused puppy, only a bit further since puppies were generally not made of rubber and could not bend their neck to a 45 degree angle. "Na, Sanji, what do you mean? You know Robin's still in town, and Nami and Chopper are right here." Sanji look behind Luffy, and sure enough, there Nami was reading the newspaper, and Chopper lying in the shade her fold-out chair provided.

"So they are. What about Usopp and the marimo?" As soon as Sanji's tongue had stopped forming words, he knew something was wrong. Luffy's face fell and clouded over in the blink of an eye, the goofy grin and aloofness replaced with desolateness and pain.

"W-why would you ask that, Sanji?" Luffy asked quietly, refusing to meet Sanji's eyes. His entire posture slouched, the picture of defeat.

"What do you mean? What happened, Luffy?"

But Luffy only shook his head repeatedly, walking quickly past Sanji, towards the figurehead. "I don't want to talk about this." he said as he passed, and if Sanji didn't know better, he'd say Luffy's voice had shook. The feeling of dread he had hoped was gone forever reformed in his stomach, and he couldn't help but frown.

At a small tug of his pants, Sanji looked down to see Chopper. "Sanji, are you okay? Did you bump your head? Do you need a doctor, maybe some bedrest?" At least Chopper was behaving normally.

"No, I'm fine Chopper, but what's got Luffy upset? What happened while I was away?" Chopper didn't seem entirely convinced and had that I-want-to-lock-you-up-and-examine-you look, but let it go. "Nothing happened, Sanji. Everything's just like normal." "Then why won't Luffy talk about Usopp and the marimo, why's he so sad, and where are they?"

Chopper frowned in his adorable way, looking Sanji as straight in the eye as he could when he only reached to his knee. Sanji scooted down to be in better ratio with the reindeer, still being taller even when crouching. "Sanji." Chopper said, in a confused manner. "I don't really know since I joined after it happened, but…Usopp's gone. You guys told me he'd died at the battle at Arlong park." Sanji's mouth dropped open, letting the cigarette fall out, unnoticed. Usopp, dead? That didn't fit. At all. This was all wrong. Sanji raked a hand through his hair, still disbelieving. After all, it was hard to just buy that one of your best friends had died over a year ago.

"That's not right….It's, no. Chopper, Usopp's dead?" Chopper seemed even more worried now, looking Sanji all over to check for any injuries that could lead to his confusion.

"Yeah, Sanji, that's what you told me. You and him were fighting three mermen, Luffy was fighting the leader, and you only managed to escape because Usopp distracted the mermen so that you could sail away with Nami. But he didn't make it along, and was killed by…Aron? Was that it?" Sanji stared into space. "Arlong. Usopp was killed by Arlong, because he sacrificed himself for our sake?" Something snapped in Sanji's head. "No, that doesn't fit. Usopp was only up against one of the fish-faces, I was against another, and Zoro was the one who defeated that octopus! Even if he was nearly dead because of that fight with Mihawk. And then he held Arlong off while I went and broke Luffy out!"

Sanji's volume had risen steadily to the point where he was shouting. Chopper backed away a little, and Sanji knew he would be checking his head later, but he didn't care for the moment.

"Sanji…" Chopper warily asked, waiting for Sanji to look him in the eye before continuing.

"Who is Zoro?"

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><p><strong>Short chapter is short, but I don't care. Dun-dun-dun, Zoro's mysteriously disappeared! And I'm sorry for killing Usopp, but it's for the storyline….kinda.<strong>

**I still love him!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey guys, sorry for the long wait. But like I said, I'll be updating when I feel like it. **

**Also, sorry this chapter is short and kind of rushed, but **_**things **_**have been going on at home and I'm not really in a writing mood.**

**Thank you for your patience.**

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><p>Who's Zoro?<p>

Sanji almost felt like laughing. Hysterically. How could someone forget that marimo? The man had green hair and three swords, for Christ's sake, he wasn't really just a face in the crowd.

"Chopper, knock it off, okay? Whatever's going on is not funny."

Sanji was aware his voice was shaking a bit, but he blamed it on being pissed. Had Usopp come up with this? Luffy, even? Whoever it was would get his ass beaten black and blue.

When Chopper just kept worriedly staring at him, Sanji hastily stood up and scanned the ship. No long nose here, no jingling earrings there…

"Chopper, just lay off already!" Sanji was shouting now, and Chopper squeaked and backed off a bit. Sanji almost never raised his voice at him directly. If he ever shouted at him, it was because he was doing something with Usopp or Luffy, and then the shouts were meant for all of them, not him in specific. He sounded so…angry. Outraged.

…panicked?

"San-"

"Just tell me where they are already, 'cause this aint funny!" Sanji cut him off but didn't wait for an answer, but stomped over to the stairs, just to see if either of them was there.

Nothing.

Sanji gritted his teeth and let his nails scrape the railing. None of this was true. It made no sense. And Sanji wouldn't believe it, if it wasn't for the facts that Luffy was a terrible liar (Sanji had seen his feeble attempts to blame the sudden lack of meat on _Robin _of all people), and he had seemed genuinely sad at the mention of Usopp.

There was also the disappearance of Zoro. Whoever could pull that trick off would have to be a goddamned mirrormaster.

"Sanji-kun, what is with you?" Nami jogged over to him, looking pissed but probably just being concerned.

"Ah, Nami-san." Great, Nami. She was too smart and mature to take part in any of the idiot's schemes. She'd cast light on everything.

"Could you please tell me where the marimo and Usopp are? It's a bit urgent."

Nami visibly tensed.

"You can find your marimos in the ocean, Sanji, but don't talk about Usopp with me. Please." Sanji's stomach lurched. Crap.

"Nami-san, why is Usopp a taboo? Where is-"

"HE'S DEAD, OKAY?" Nami snapped. Sanji noticed to his horror that tears were stinging at her eyes.

"He's dead, and it's all my fault! If I hadn't..! If I'd been more-" Nami cut herself off. After a couple of breaths, in which Sanji stood in stunned silence, she turned to him again, more composed but still obviously upset. "I don't know what's with you, Sanji, but please don't bring that up. Not to Luffy. Not to me." She walked off before he could respond, heading straight for her room.

"..I just don't get it." Sanji said to himself.

"Cook-san?" Robin was suddenly behind him, showing the ever-so-slight crease of confusion on her brow. "Is everything all right? You seem perturbed." Sanji rubbed his hidden eye. "Robin-san…Zoro? Where is he? And what's this with Usopp?" _Please don't think I'm crazy, please just smile and tell me they're in town or something._

Robin tilted her head much more subtly than Luffy had. "Usopp-san's fate is obvious, as you were at the place, yes? However, I am unfamiliar with this Zoro character." Luffy and Chopper, who had approached when Nami walked away, nodded behind her. "Is he your friend? Can we meet him?" Luffy piped in, having bounced back from his previous episode of uncharacteristic silence. Sanji sighed, deciding to play along for now. "Tall guy 'bout yay high, real muscly, tan, green hair and earrings? Has three swords and a haramaki? Total knucklehead most of the time?" Sanji looked around at the faces that showed no recognition.

"Oh, for the love of-Come on! Luffy, he's your first crewmate! You saved him from execution or something, I don't know. He used to be a bounty hunter, nearly got killed by Hawk-eyes Mihawk when he faced him in a duel…has this dream about becoming the world's best swordsman?" Nothing. No reaction save for confused blinks. Sanji was getting desperate. "Chopper, you cling to him all the time when you get scared! Robin-san, he used to be really skeptical about you joining us…Nami keeps raising his debts, he scares the living crap out of…!" Sanji was going to say 'out of Usopp, but bit his tongue, not wanting to cause another scene. Luffy and Chopper looked at each other in a what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-him way, and Robin crossed her arms. "Cook-san, were you dreaming about it, perchance?"

Sanji held his breath, coming to terms with his crew actually not recognizing their very first member. How could they forget? He was their friend! He was practically the First Mate, though it wasn't official.

How could _Luffy _forget? Zoro was his oldest friend! As far as Sanji knew, they'd been near inseparable from the moment Luffy asked him to be in his crew.

And Usopp…oh God, did that mean Usopp was actually…? But how? Why? What the freaking hell?

Sanji sighed, letting out the breath. This was wrong. So wrong."I need to be alone for a while…I'm just babbling, must've just imagined it. Nevermind. Sorry. Pay me no heed…hope I didn't ruin your day." He walked off into the kitchen, the only place that felt even remotely familiar. Everything else was alien to him.

Maybe he was imagining things? Maybe everything had been a dream…or maybe he was going nuts. Maybe, he was sitting in an alleyway rambling to himself, disappeared into insanity for one reason or another.

He tried to busy himself with making something, some desserts for Nami or coffee for Robin, but his heart wasn't in it, and that's saying something since it was for his precious girls. If anything, he always had the heart in his cooking.

Soon the monsters would grow hungry though, monsters meaning Luffy, Chopper and-

Sanji dropped the saucepan unexpectedly, just now noticing his hands were shaking a bit. He stroked a palm over his face, stretching his skin like it would somehow help clean all the stress and worries and confusion. But in the end, all it did was make him more tired, wishing he could just fall asleep and wake up to a normal ship with a normal crew, none of them dead ro mysteriously disappeared.

No, not disappeared, Sanji corrected himself. If Zoro had just disappeared, Luffy and everyone would be searching every corner of the world. Sanji would, too, although admitting it out loud would put some damper on his pride.

So what had happened? Because, as Chopper had explained it, Zoro hadn't been with them when they were fighting Arlong, so therefore he couldn't take on that octopus guy.

And come to think of it, he had been the one to distract Arlong while Sanji went to free Luffy, although to a great cost of his own. Sanji vividly remembered how gruesome his chestwound had looked before he got someone who at least knew what he was doing to stitch it. Even then, he hadn't looked so great coming out of the unsanitary hut.

So, Zoro not being there had somehow caused Usopp to do something _stupid_. Even if it had saved the others, it was damn stupid if it rendered him…dead.

_Not that he's actually dead! _Sanji desperately thought. _There was just some…misunderstanding. _

It was all a mistake.

Sanji began mindlessly cleaning everything in the kitchen, even the already clean silverware and pots and glasses. At least he could to that without screwing up, and maybe the hot water would help calm him down.

It all came down to the marimo. Something made him not join Luffy, and it had obviously had some bad domino effect. All Sanji had to do was fix that, and things could be normal again. Right?

Sanji's hand had been hovering to his side for a while not, the plate dripping wet all over the counter and floor. He almost couldn't realize why he was expecting something to happen, like the plate would just miraculously dry itself…

Oh, right.

No one was drying the dishes for him.

He fought the overwhelming urge to smash something as he almost passed a plate over to the non-existent Zoro, _not _standing next to him.

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><p><strong>By the way, I've decided that since there are agreements and disagreements on the ZoSan, I'll make it very suggestive and bromantic, but probably no actual romance action. Unless I for some reason decide to, you never know.<strong>

**Thanks to everyone who's still reading despite my faltering dependableness. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, I know I haven't updated all that recently, but why do you think that is? I got sucked into a new fandom. Which one? **

**HOMESTUCK.**

**It is so awesome and I am SO hooked. Hella complicated, but great.**

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><p>Muffled shouts and voices rose form outside the galley, snapping Sanji from his thoughts. It sounded like Luffy had found something cool, which probably scared Chopper from the sounds he was making, and Nami sounded disturbed too. And then there was one more voice, a deeper male one, that Sanji didn't recognize. For a split moment he let himself believe that it was Zoro, somehow managing to find his way back to reality, proving to everyone that Sanji was not insane and had really been absolutely right all along. But the thought was discarded right away. Sanji knew Zoro's voice; it was deeper than the one he was hearing, and when agitated (which this voice definitely was, whoever it belonged to), it was way more gravely and rough. Funny how it could turn from a smooth baritone to a feral growl in a matter of seconds.<p>

This one sounded way too familiar though, but he still couldn't place it. He dried his hand off on a towel and shook his bangs away from his eyes, muttering under his breath. Footsteps from outside were coming closer now, and Sanji reached to open the door, before it opened itself and slammed into his face.

He fell onto his bottom, very ungracefully and definitely not fit for a gentleman, clutching his bleeding nose tight. Just how many ties was he going to risk staining today?

Again, that somehow familiar but still not voice sounded from above him, clearly not at all sorry to have caused him pain.

"What the fucking hell is going on here?"

Sanji was about to tell this guy not to have such a foul language in front of the ladies, but that would have been kind of pointless, seeing as how this guy was him.

As in, literally, Sanji was sitting on the floor watching himself standing over himself.

"I…wait, what?"

Sanji quickly got up on his feet, unnerved by the same swirly eyebrow, the same baby-blue eyes, same blonde hair, same oh my god did his voice really sound like that? Christ.

The other Sanji -wait, there can't be two Sanjis- the latter Sanji was inspecting him with just as much fear-blend curiosity, possibly also wincing at the sound of his own voice.

"Bastard, who the hell are you?" latter-Sanji asked Sanji, earning a frown. "I'm Sanji, obviously. And you?"

"Oh no you're not, I'm Sanji! You are some impostor in my galley, cooking with my utensils, probably messing up my kitchen!"

Sanji fumed. "Your kitchen? This is my goddamn kitchen, and I'll have you know I know every single inch of it, and it's as clean as the day I used it first!" Who did that guy think he was? Because that certainly wasn't him, there was only one him and he was he.

….

Sanji's head hurt.

Latter-Sanji was about to shout back, probably making shove come to kick, but was cut off by Nami's voice from outside.

"What is going on here?"

It was only then that the Sanjis noticed everyone looking at them, either curious, scared, a mix of the both, or in one case, quietly amused.

"I go away for fifteen minutes and you're alr- WHAT."

Nami stopped dead in her tracks when she noticed the two Sanjis.

Her eyes traveled from one to the other, both with the same goofy expression he -they?- always got around women. Both with the exact same face, save for some blood on one.

After staring for a while, gathering her face, she knocked Luffy on the head.

"Owwie! Nami, what was that for?""I just KNOW this is somehow your fault!"

After a long time of trying to get a word in between everything people were saying; Robin interrogating, Nami and Chopper bombarding questions, Luffy making idiotic exclamations ("Maybe someone ate a Sanji-Sanji fruit?") and Latter-Sanji's somewhat malicious comments, Sanji just gave up on trying to make sense of things. He's started mentally calling latter-Sanji Green, since his tie was a light green.

It wasn't until Robin came to his rescue, saying that maybe they should talk things out over some refreshments, that Sanji finally got out of the hurricane's eye.

As he was about to go into the kitchen to cook something up, Green roughly pushed him out of the way. "You're not cooking jack shit in my kitchen, blondie." he threw over his shoulder as he walked inside, kicking the door closed violently.

"Your hair is the same as mine, you idiot!" Sanji shouted at the closed door.

"Is he always this friendly?" he asked Robin, who had curiously sat down nearby.

"Cook-san has a lot of built-up frustration. Things haven't been easy on him, so to speak. So to answer your question, yes, only normally he's far worse. I think you may have upset his balance."

Sanji hmm'd thoughtfully.

True enough, his spars with Zoro usually helped him vent energy.

He grew up on the Baratie. It was constant vigilance there; you mess up, you get a beating. You mouth back, you get a beating. You're in the way, you get a beating. It sounded rough, but it was Sanji's life, and he'd embraced it. It toughened him up, too, and helped him bond with some of the chefs.

After joining Luffy, things were much more quiet.

Did you scoff? I bet you did.

Okay, maybe not exactly more _quiet_, but there was less fighting involved, usually it was just setting Luffy straight, kick him out of the kitchen, case closed. Constantly getting into fights with Zoro helped him improve; helped them both. Luffy and Robin had their powers, improvements seemed to come in the spur of the moment for them. Chopper was always expanding his medical knowledge, Nami was always getting better at navigation, Usopp practiced targeting every day. Zoro helped Sanji keep his guard up, and his kicks hard. It was like these nice, heart-lifting conversations girls have, only it was violent and physical.

Never did Sanji think he'd miss the bastard.

The evening pushed the daylight away, and soon they were sitting outside, stomachs full, enjoying the comfortably chilly night air.

"So, er….Sanji. Kun. Think you can explain some things?" Green very nearly growled at Nami calling Sanji "kun" like she probably did with him, but settled down, probably also aching to know what the hell a second version of him was doing here.

Sanji took a long, slow breath, wondering just how he was going to even begin explain himself.

_By talking, maybe? _He humorously thought to himself.

"Well… for starters, I come from a different…time, I guess? Universe? I'm not sure. Anyway, I have a crew. You are my crew -or maybe not, maybe you're completely different- ah, hell with it. Let's just call it my crew to make things easier, yeah?" Sanji looked around, getting nods in confirmation.

"Right. So, my crew is pretty much like you, only we- ..we have Usopp. Still." Already noticing the dampening mood, Sanji hurriedly kept talking. "But the thing is, I- _We_, also have a swordsman. His name's Zoro, he's a big yutz but he's…important to me- _US_." Luffy stuck his hand up like a student asking for permission to use the restroom. "Ooh! OOH! Mr. Sanji!" Sanji nodded for him to continue."Is he your boyfriend?"

Sanji paled a bit from the utter weirdness of that question. He didn't have to say anything, though, since Nami knocked him over and prompted for Sanji to continue. And who was he to deny a lady, right? Aha ha ha…..

He sighed. This was going to be a long, hard process.

"So, basically, I went back in time and really, really screwed something up, big time. And I guess this is the outcome. "He gestured to his kind-of-crew.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, contemplating what this not-really-a-stranger-but-still-somehow-a-stranger had said. After all, time travel was a doozy to swallow.

"You have to go back." Luffy sounded, perking up with his whole body like usual.

Sanji nodded and sighed. "But I'm not sure what exactly I need to fix. And… if I go back, I don't know what will happen to you."

Chopper had looked so scared when Sanji talked about going back, and even Nami had a twinkle of fear in her eyes. "You mean, maybe, we won't exist?" Chopper squeaked. Sanji immediately felt like the world's biggest asshole, twofold. On one hand, he could save Usopp and get Zoro back, on the other, he'd be killing off his crew. Maybe all of them, maybe none.

"Doctor-san, we are essentially the same people. Maybe we won't disappear, only change."

"But that's a big maybe." Nami pointed out.

"He has to try!" Luffy loudly exclaimed, silencing everyone. Something was up; you could feel his tone shifting slightly from normal Luffy to about-to-do-something-important Luffy.

"If there's a chance -any chance- that we can get Usopp back, alive, and happy, then we have to take it. Otherwise, we're no better than the ones who killed him. And if this Zoro-guy is our friend, then we need him too!"

Dead silence fell on the crew again, each in their own, mental debate.

"I think we'll have to sleep on this." Green said, rising up from his seat, and the rest if them followed as if it had been a signal. They all tried to chat light-heartedly, trying to repress the depressing aura that had fallen over. They offered him a hammock, but Sanji said he'd find a hotel in the town.

Besides, it would have hurt to see no green blanket on the couch, and no one snoring in Usopp's hammock.

Sanji's mind ventured back to when they'd called beds in the Merry, although Nami had already called an entire room to herself, making the boys split one between themselves.

Most of them chose a hammock, because according to Luffy "that's what pirates do!", but Zoro had gone for the couch near the door.

Later, when Sanji asked about it, he'd simply said "trying to get as far away from you idiots as possible, might have to run outside if you start snoring", by which he of course meant "I'd like to sleep near the exit, in case something happens". Sanji knew that's what he meant, because like Zoro, he spoke in what Nami called 'Macho Code'. Zoro was too much of a toughie to say he wanted to be there if needed.

Stupid overprotective idiot.

However, Sanji didn't go straight into town. He read it from Green's body language; he knew what was up. Apparently, someone needed to talk. He lit a cigarette, noting how the pack was almost empty, taking in the sweet poison with gratefulness.

Soon, he was joined by another waft of smoke, identical to his own. Green had taken his jacket and tie off, wearing only a white shirt, whereas Sanji was wearing a light blue one.

_Shame, now I can't really call him Green anymore. I suppose I could call him white?_

_..Nah, he stays Green. _

The two smoked in silence for a while, letting the unspoken things say their say.

"…he means a lot to you, huh?" Green mused after a while. Sanji didn't need any clarification, knowing Green's mind like his own. Ha ha.

"Yeah. Not just to me, to everyone. He's sort of like this slimy, sticky, gross seaweed that somehow keep us together."

Green chuckled a bit, the first emotion besides annoyance Sanji had ever seen from him.

"You should go for it."Sanji frowned.

"You sure?"

Green threw the cigarette butt into the ocean, watching the salty water dissolve the fragile paper until it had sneaked into every airhole, leaving it to sink to the rocky bottom.

"…Yeah. If we stop existing, we can't feel bad about it, right?" Green looked down. "And…to tell the truth, the future -or past, or present- that you described, it seems… so much better than this. I love them, you know, and I'd do anything for them, but I always felt like this wasn't right. Like we weren't…completed. I know the others felt it too."

He smiled. "So. Go and make us all happy again."

Sanji felt a twinge of regret inside his chest, for leaving them like this, for maybe dooming them to be like this, and to be the cause of this in the first place.""Take good care of them." Sanji finally said, before jumping over the railing and onto the port.

"You too, shitbag." Green replied, watching his counterpart turn and run off into the night.

He sincerely hoped things would turn out all right.

Sanji ran, towards where he knew that machine-thing was. Doomed or not doomed, he'd give his own life to undo what he did. He was going to get everything back to normal and he was going to do it now.

He gritted his teeth, and fastened his run.

It was time to set things straight.

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><p><strong>Bum Bum Buuuuum!<strong>

**This is a very important thing; the Crew isn't complete unless everyone's in it! I hope I didn't confuse you with this Green stuff, but I needed to name him something other than other-Sanji. **

"-same oh my god did his voice really sound like that? Christ."

**We've all been there.**


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